(Un)Familiar
by inconsistentlypresent
Summary: Connie loses some of her memories. The situation's not as dire as it seems. [Written for Lilith for Every Woman 2016.]


A/N: Originally written for Lilith on AO3.

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Connie's glad Steven's got such a firm hold of her hand. She's so distracted by their surroundings that she'd probably trip without anyone to lead her. Also, Steven's hands are nice; warm, the grip not too tight or loose - not that Connie would ever admit that out loud.

Amethyst's room is jaw-dropping, shining with haphazard blueish crystals sprouting from the floor and the walls. Connie privately thinks it's a pity that it's covered with so much random stuff, but even that is fascinating. Connie is even pretty sure that she saw an aquarium in one corner, but before she could get a closer look, Steven pulled her away. After all, the real reason they're here is to retrieve a Gem tool that Steven heard Pearl mention.

"Are you sure we don't need Amethyst's permission?" Connie asks, as they weave around a tall stack of defunct microwaves (scratch that - one of them is heating up a bowl of oranges). "And are you sure about where we're going?" As interesting as Amethyst's room is, Connie definitely doesn't want to get lost in here.

"Nah, she's pretty cool about her room, just as long as we don't mess with her piles," Steven replies. "And I remember passing a memory-device pile last time I was in here. Actually, it's just a little further ahead, let's run!"

They do indeed break into a run, and Connie laughs, affectionate, at Steven's eagerness, his matter-of-fact attitude towards all Gem-related things. She wonders if she'll ever reach that point of acceptance, where towers of magical instruments can be accepted without a blink of an eye.

Her bag, containing her books and her phone, hits against her leg as they run. They're both panting, with huge grins on their faces, when they arrive at the pile Steven mentioned, near the bank of a small pond.

It's not a huge pile, but there are at least twenty devices. Some of them look like regular old remotes, the only difference being the gem-encrusted buttons. Others are definitely alien, with strange shapes and dials.

"It's got to be in here somewhere," Steven says, crouching down.

"What did you say it did, again?" Connie asks, also folding her legs to get a closer look.

"Pearl called it a memory sweeper. She said that it can hide memories, but I don't know anything else about it."

"What are you planning to use it for?" Connie curiously pokes a swirly circle design on the side of one of the devices. The material is ice-cold under her finger. She snatches her hand away when the device beeps. Thankfully, it doesn't shock her or burn her, but the device does speak.

"Heat sensed, registering."

Connie looks over at Steven nervously for his reaction, but he apparently didn't notice the noise. Instead he's deep in the middle of his explanation of why he needs the memory sweeper.

" - and that's when Lapis said that she wished she could just forget her memories sometimes, and I've been thinking about that, and then just this morning Pearl mentioned the memory sweeper, so I asked her where it was and she told me she didn't know so I asked Amethyst -"

"Uh, Steven?" she says, trying to be louder, but her voice comes out small, strangled. Connie hears a beep from the device and quickly looks back at it. "Awaiting request," it says. Her panic amps up when the device starts flashing different colors.

"- and after this, you can tell me all about your new Spirit Morph Saga theory!" Steven continues.

Connie knows he's not trying to drown her out, but she's really starting to worry now. The device is continuing to emit a multicolored glow, and one beam of light is starting to sprout, aimed straight at her.

"Request processed. Sweeping initializing."

"Steven!" Connie yells, as she finds herself unable to move her limbs.

"Huh?" Steven turns. His eyes widen. "Connie! Did you activate it?"

"Did I?" Connie says, her own voice sounding very far away, and that's the last thing she remembers before things disappear in a whirl of color.

"Connie? Connie!"

Hands are shaking her shoulders, but she can't see anything. She realizes that's because her eyes are closed, so she opens them.

Steven hovers over her, looking very concerned for some reason. Connie's eyes adjust to the nearness of his face.

"Do you know where you are?" Steven asks. He keeps looking down at that memory device in his hand - one of the many from the pile. Right, they were looking for a memory sweeper. And Connie activated one - she remembers seeing it light up. What had happened then? She wants to ask Steven, then realizes he asked her a question.

Connie looks around, sees shining purple crystals amongst mountains of various odds and ends. "Uh, Amethyst's room, right?"

Steven looks relieved. "You remember!" He backs off, and tosses the device away. "I guess it didn't work. Phew." He shakes his head. "Maybe we shouldn't look for the memory sweeper right now. That was scary."

Connie nods slowly, still a little out of it after waking up so soon. Her mind, though groggy, buzzes with questions. She feels like she's missing something.

"So, are you going to explain your new theory to me now?" He gestures towards her bag, which is lying by her feet.

Connie picks her bag up uncertainly. "What are you talking about?" she asks, as she peeks in. Everything seems normal, except for several books that she doesn't recognize. She stares at them, baffled.

"You said you'd come up with a new theory about why Lisa unlocked her divination powers so much later than Archimicarus expected." At Connie's blank look, he tries, "You know. The Spirit Morph Saga? Unfamiliar Familiar?"

"Huh? Oh, you mean this book!" She spots a book in her bag with the words 'Unfamiliar Familiar' emblazoned on the front and takes it out to show Steven. Its cover depicts a young girl with a bird. "Are these all yours? What are they about?"

Steven stares at her, completely taken aback. "Oh no," he says. "Something _is_ wrong."

"What are you talking about?" Connie says, confused and a little irritated. She's certain now that there's something she's not grasping. And perhaps she should be used to that, when she's best friends with a boy who can use magic, but the fact remains: Connie doesn't like not knowing.

Connie waits as patiently as she can for a response, but doesn't get one. Rarely is Steven this reluctant to explain something to her. Though, it has happened before. In a fit of desperation at the thought, she threatens, "If you won't tell me, I'll go ask the other Gems."

Steven is now gingerly picking up the memory device again, careful to avoid touching a swirled button on the side. "Let's go find them right now," he promises. "They'll take care of everything." He appears to cheer up considerably at the thought. "Yeah, of course they will!"

"Alright, but they better have answers." Now Connie tries conceal her worry, forcing her voice to sound as casual as she can make it. This is obviously more serious than she first thought.

"They will," Steven says confidently. "Hey, by the way, you might want to read that book. I think you'll like it." He waves a hand, beckoning her to follow.

Connie walks after him, slinging her bag over her shoulder. She glances down at the book still in her hands for a moment. She still doesn't know what it and the others - probably sequels - were doing in her bag. She's never seen them in her life. But Connie's a voracious reader, and besides, she'd trust Steven with her life. If he says it's okay, it probably is.

After she reads the blurb on the back, Connie can't resist cracking it open to the first page. She skims over the beginning as they walk.

 _"Lisa awoke with a start, the echoes of her dreams still dancing in her mind . . ._

Connie's never had a big family, but she imagines this is what they're like. She's watches, wondering if she should interrupt, as Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl bicker and snatch the device from each other.

"If you just cleaned up your room once in a while and put the dangerous items out of reach, none of this would have happened!" Pearl is saying to Amethyst. "The Maheswarans will never trust us now."

"Unless we don't tell them," Garnet offers.

"A memory sweeper isn't dangerous," Amethyst protests. "Besides, it'll wear off soon."

Steven, who's pacing nervously next to Connie, speaks up. "Wait, it wears off?" He sounds disappointed, and Connie can't help but feel momentarily hurt. But then he continues: "I was hoping Lapis could use it."

Immediately, Connie feels foolish. How could she think so badly of her best friend? She wants to blame it on her somewhat addled state, but she knows it's her own fault. Of course Steven cares about Connie - he cares about pretty much everyone.

Garnet smiles down at Steven. "I don't think Lapis would accept any sort of memory modification, but that was very sweet of you, Steven."

"It could take up to twenty years to wear off," Pearl is saying to Amethyst, "which, yes, may not be a long time, for us, but for _Connie_ -"

"Um, can I say something?" Connie pipes up. Everyone's eyes turn to her, except maybe Garnet's - her eyes are always hidden behind that visor - but even she angles her head towards Connie.

"Twenty years _is_ a long time," she admits, "but it looks like the memories I lost weren't that important. And anyway, they're easy to replace. Of course I'm grateful if you try to recover my memories, but it's alright if you don't. Really."

The Gems all look surprised. Connie shrugs at them, trying for a reassuring smile. Maybe she should be more worried about this, but she still doesn't see why.

Pearl is the first to speak. "Regardless, I'm sure we'd all feel better if your memories were un-sweeped," she says. "May I?" She snatches the device from Garnet's hand as soon as the taller Gem nods. "I'm nearly certain that this particular model was meant only for temporary sweeping. As Amethyst already observed, the recovery time is only up to twenty years - hardly lasting - and as for the minimum recovery time - well, it could happen any time now. That means it can probably be reversed, we just need to figure out how." She pauses. "Connie, I hope I didn't worry you earlier when I was - less composed than I should have been. I'm afraid I set a bad example. I _am_ your instructor, after all."

"It's no problem," Connie says quickly. It feels wrong to see Pearl - or any of the Gems - this flustered over her. She's just Connie.

"Pearl is right," Garnet says. "This type of accident shouldn't have happened. We'll take a look at the memory sweeper and see if we can figure out how to reverse this, and we'll confirm that the only memories you lost were about those books. In the meantime, you two should go have fun at the Big Donut."

"How did you know I wanted to go there?" Steven asks, genuinely amazed, even though he knows Garnet has future vision. Connie stifles a laugh.

"Here, Steven," Amethyst says, as her hands glow. Connie watches in fascination as she summons several forms of currency - three huge golden coins, various assorted bills - and drops them into Steven's palms. "Treat yourselves, 'kay? And Connie, I'm really sorry about all of this."

And then Connie feels weird and undeserving all over again, looking at Amethyst's contrite face. "I promise, it's all fine." She adds, attempting to lighten the mood. "And don't worry, I won't tell my parents."

"We'll see you soon!" Steven stuffs the money into his pockets, Connie tries to wave as cheerfully as she can, then the two of them hurry out the door.

As they walk past the familiar shops and people, Steven is just finishing up a story about seeing Opal for the first time. Connie is so engrossed she barely realizes they've reached the Big Donut, when Steven suddenly pauses.

"Wait."

Connie waits.

"Do you know what I've just realized?" Steven says. "The Spirit Morph Saga is your favorite series. You were the one who got me to read it. Now I know everything that happens, but you don't. Isn't that weird?"

"It seems I have good taste," Connie teases. "It's a really good book so far."

"What part are you at?" Steven asks.

She picks up the book to check where she left off. "I was at the end of chapter three. You know: 'a shadow flickered on the edge of Lisa's vision. A shadow with feathers.' Wow!" Connie jumps up and down a couple times in excitement. "Isn't that line just great?"

"You know, you can keep reading, if you'd like," Steven says, as he pushes open the door of the Big Donut. "I really want to see your reaction to everything that happens. Especially this - thing, that happens in the middle."

"Ooh, so mysterious," Connie says. But she holds off on her temptation until Steven starts ordering. Then Connie can't stand it anymore, and she opens the book again.

Connie ends up with her face buried in the book all the way back from the Big Donut. Occasionally Steven will grab her arm and stop her from running into a lamppost, or off the sidewalk. She'll look up long enough to say, "Thanks!" then immediately drift back to her book.

She barely registers that they're back in the house. She does notice that the Gems don't seem to be around, and that the afternoon sun is shining bright through the windows, letting her read without turning on a light.

Her eyes don't move from the pages of her book as Steven sets down the bag of doughnuts on the counter. Suddenly she lets out a gasp that makes Steven jump.

"What? What is it?" he asks, craning his head to see the chapter number.

Connie shakes her head, furious. "Archimicarus knew about the one-eyed man all along!"

"You're already at that part?" Steven exclaims. "I didn't know you could read that fast."

Connie looks up from _Unfamiliar Familiar_. "Me neither. But it's like I can process everything faster. I guess it's because I've read it before, even if I don't remember doing it." She puts the book down, and says, contemplatively, "It kind of feels like a superpower, which is, well, pretty silly."

"You're the fastest re-reader in the world!" Steven says, pulling out a doughnut and offering it to her. Connie takes it, as Steven continues, "I don't know, that sounds pretty cool to me."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Connie says, and bites into the doughnut. As she chews, she wonders how the Gems are faring with the memory sweeper. Ridiculously, she hopes she has time to finish all four books before they un-sweep her memories.

Steven starts munching his doughnut as well. "I think they've been working at it all day. Or at least, Amethyst has. I think she feels really bad that this happened." He hesitates. "I . . . feel bad that this happened, too. I know you say it's not a serious problem, but what if you lost more important memories? It would be my fault."

"Steven," Connie says, concerned now. "It's not your fault at all. It could have happened to either of us. How could we know that the sweeper was heat-activated? And we've done so many dangerous things, this probably doesn't even count. It's just an honest mistake. Besides," she says, smiling at him, "I was the one who activated it in the first place.

Steven still looks unsure, but he nods slowly.

"Now let's talk about Archimicarus," Connie says firmly. "I still can't believe it! How could he do that to Lisa?"

Steven finally smiles back. "Archimicarus didn't tell Lisa because . . . he thought he was protecting her."

"Lisa," Connie says, "has learned to protect herself."

After she puts away her tennis bag, Connie races back to her room. She's about to start book three in The Spirit Morph Saga and she can't wait.

"It's late, young lady. You should be getting to bed," her mom says, stepping in after her.

"Can I read first?" Connie asks, as she picks up the book from her desk.

Her mom's eyebrows rise. "You're reading that one again?"

"…yes."

"Alright, but maybe you should go book-shopping soon. You haven't been back to Forest's Bookstore since you bought Destiny's End." Her mother laughs.

Connie laughs along, as guilt pokes at her conscience. She silently vows to tell her parents about losing her memories - as soon as she gets them back.

"What, no rant?" Her mother shakes her head. "If you really are going to see Steven again tomorrow, you should go to sleep early. Turn out the lights before ten."

"Yes, Mother!" Connie responds quickly. As soon as her mother leaves the room, she flips open her book and starts reading, eyes darting over the pages, a smile on her face.

Connie is avidly reading book four as Steven tunes and occasionally strums his instrument. They're sitting out on the beach, and the sea breeze carries the music gently to Connie's ears. Connie still can't get over how talented he is, and if if were any other day, she would be listening with rapt attention.

Connie turns the page. After a few seconds, she stops. "Wait, what?" Her eyes go over the same passage, widening in disbelief. "No, you're kidding!"

Steven looks up. "What part are you at?"

"No way, this is ridiculous!" Connie says. "It's totally out of character. Why would Archimicarus confess his love to _Lisa_. He's - he's her friend. And -!"

Steven looks like he's trying not to laugh. "- he's a bird," he finishes. "I know, you've told me. But if you go back to the previous books, there are hints that he was human all along! The author was planning it the _entire time_."

"No!" Connie says, shocked, incredulous. She falls to her knees on the sand. "How could this happen? Why?"

She dully registers Steven patting her on the shoulder. "Hey, it isn't so bad. All the fans were so angry about it that the Destiny's End movie is going to have a completely different ending. You showed me a bunch of articles about it."

Connie perks up. "There . . . there's a movie?"

"The one for Unfamiliar Familiar came out a few months ago," Steven says, grinning.

Connie suppresses her squeal of delight and throws her arms around Steven. "A movie! They made a movie! Is it any good? Did it change a lot of things from the book?"

Steven pauses to think. "You gave it four-point-six-five stars out of five, I think."

Connie whoops. Her voice carries over the beach, frightening a pack of seagulls, but she doesn't mind.

Slyly, Steven shoots her a look and adds, "You know, I have the DVD back at the house. . . ."

By silent agreement, they take off, racing each other back. Connie wins.

Soon, Connie does get her memory back. The Gems save the day, of course - they figure out the memory sweeper in a matter of days, and return to her what had been swept away. Memories of standing in line for the midnight release of the last book. Of watching the first movie in theaters. Of Steven's mom's room.

When Connie tells her parents about the ordeal, they're as horrified as she was afraid they'd be. They make her promise to be more careful, and to never, ever touch anything magical without the Gems watching. "It's a learning experience," her dad declares, and her parents nod together in agreement. And of course, Connie automatically nods along. But in her opinion, it was actually something else. It was a priceless opportunity.

"After all, who gets lucky enough to relive their favorite books - and then discuss their first impressions with their best friend?" she says to Steven, as she thumbs through book two. She's pulling up all the evidence that supports a new fan theory she's come up with, explaining why Lisa's mother actually isn't dead. "It's given me a whole new perspective on the entire series!"

Steven, sitting next to her on the sofa, book three open and balanced on his knees, says, with a content sigh, "I'm really glad that everything turned out alright."

"Yeah," Connie says, as she pauses in her page-turning to look over at Steven. "Me too."


End file.
